Bad Romance
by Little Sakura-chan
Summary: Drabble Collection AU and RK Worlds : When things that should and shouldn't happen result in a bad romance.
1. I Want Your Disease

**Beginning Note:** So, apparently I've been really into writing Rurouni Kenshin stories again. Not really sure why. I think it's because I re-read _Broken Pieces_ by linay. But, regardless of the reason, I'm glad I am, though they seem to be getting somewhat violent. This is the first part of the _Bad Romance_ series that popped into my head. Yes, the title is based off of the Lady Gaga song "Bad Romance" and each part is based of part of the lyrics. None of these stories are connected. Some will be AU, others part of the RK world. Please enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the RuroKen characters… I just screwed them up for my own sick purposes. They belong to Watsuki Nobahiro.

_**I Want Your Disease**_

"Kenshin!" cried the raven-haired girl tearfully, whimpering in pain. "Please, that hurts!"

The former assassin's grip tightened on her delicate wrist, bruising the pale flesh. He dragged her along the dusty street, anger fizzing comfortably under his breastbone.

"Kenshin!" the girl cried again, this time eliciting a response out of the normally gentle man.

"Don't call me that," the redhead growled, shaking her roughly, like a terrier shakes a rat.

"It's your name," she said stubbornly through her tears. "And that's what I'll call you."

She found herself being spun into the plank wall of someone's house, head framed by two muscular arms. Tear-filled azure eyes met angry golden amber.

"I said not to call me Kenshin, Kaoru," the man warned.

Kaoru stuck her chin out mulishly despite the occasional silver tear sliding down her face. His molten eyes narrowed and he frowned, tiny lines appearing at the corners of his mouth and eyes, showing his true age.

"I said to stay put," he snapped, hitting the wood beside her head for emphasis.

"I'm capable of handling myself, _Battousai_," the kendo teacher bit out, sneering a little.

"Yeah, you did a fantastic job before," Kenshin shot back. "Let's see. A bloody lip, bruises, a black eye… You're right. You did a great job of taking care of yourself. If I hadn't shown up when I did, you'd be way worse."

The teenager gave a humorless laugh.

"My hero," she said sarcastically, tone filled with venom. "I've been taking care of myself years before you appeared. What makes you think you can act like my father?"

She spat at his feet.

"You're a damn hypocrite. You're far from the person you were when you first came to the dojo. What happened?"

"He got lost," the redhead said shortly, clenching his fists until his knuckles were white. "Deal with it."

Angry, she spit in his face.

"You disgust me with what you've become," she raged, desperately missing the Kenshin that she loved.

She cringed and closed her eyes tightly as she saw Kenshin's hand fly towards her face. Kaoru braced herself for the sting of flesh against flesh. It never came. The dark-haired girl opened her blue eyes. Kenshin's hand was stopped inches from her cheek. Instead, he grabbed her chin, forcing her to look at him. He was staring at her, an indescribable emotion flashing in his eyes.

"Your stubbornness will get you killed," the former killer told her softly, fingers tightening painfully on her fragile jaw. "I can't live with that, Kaoru. Do you understand that?"

Mesmerized by his gaze, the young woman nodded.

"I would never hurt you," he reassured her, stroking her tangled hair with his other hand. "I never want to hurt you."

He swallowed the lump in his throat.

"I have a disease. It's something I can't help."

"Disease?" Kaoru echoed faintly.

"Yes."

"Are you sick?" she asked in a moment of unintelligence.

"In ways," Kenshin muttered. "It's a disease that turns me into this. This monster."

"I don't understand," the teenager said, brow furrowed.

"It's not something Gensai or Megumi can treat. It's a result from years of dancing with insanity. It's chaos."

"Chaos?"

Kenshin cupped Kaoru's face with strong, calloused hands.

"Chaos," he affirmed. "It grips me in moments like a vice. Like before, when you were in danger. I become this."

"I want to understand."

"What do you think-"

"No," the girl said, cutting him off, no longer angry with the man. "I want to understand. I want you to share the burden."

"Kaoru, no," Kenshin said alarmed, worry lighting his amber eyes.

"Yes, Kenshin."

He flinched at the name and her tone.

"I want to understand your pain and your reasons. I want you to show me chaos."

"I can't le–"

"I'm not asking, I'm demanding."

The inflicted man took in her appearance. The dusty and torn state of her once fine kimono, the messy raven tresses, the forming black eye, and her bloody lip. Perhaps she could understand his burden and bear some of it. He just prayed to God it wouldn't break her.

As he lowered his lips to her, he whispered something into her ear.

_Welcome to chaos._


	2. I Don't Want To Be Friends

**Beginning Note:** Okay… So I confess… For some weird reason I am a secret Sano/Kaoru fan. Please, no head biting. Not everyone likes this couple, but I hope I write this well enough that people will enjoy reading it. Don't worry. I'm still a true Kenshin/Kaoru fan! Please enjoy and review!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the RuroKen characters… I just screwed them up for my own sick purposes.

**_I Don't Want To Be Friends_**

Sanosuke walked into an eerily silent dojo. The cloudy day cast muted shadows as the tall, brawny man made his way to the house. Where was everyone?

"Kenshin? Jouchan?" he called.

There was no answer. Something wasn't right.

As he stepped into the hallway, he noticed the uncharacteristic disarray. To his left, a shattered vase lay in a puddle of water, the flowers it used to hold strewn across the floor, wilting in the summer heat. He turned as he heard footsteps behind him.

"Kaoru?" Sanosuke said, surprised at her appearance.

She was disheveled, practice uniform lopsided and dirty and for once, her midnight hair was unbound, spilling around her shoulders.

"Sanosuke, what are you doing here?" she asked, voice slightly surprised.

"No work," he said, stepping towards the kendo teacher. "Where is everyone?"

"Yahiko is working at the Akebeko."

"And Kenshin?"

"Gone," she said simply, jaw tightening.

"Gone? What do you mean 'gone,' Kaoru?" he asked, peering down at her pale face.

"It's just as it sounds, Sanosuke. He's gone."

A stray tear slid down her cheek, but she wiped it away determinedly.

"What happened?" the older man asked, taking Kaoru's arm and leading her into the sitting room. He took the cushion across from her.

"I woke up this morning and realized that no one else was up," she said, voice dull. "I knew Kenshin wasn't up because I didn't smell any food cooking. I wondered if he was sick."

The girl brushed imaginary lint off of her hakama. She offered Sanosuke a soft smile and he placed a large, tan hand over her small, pale ones, which urged her to continue.

"So I went to his door and knocked, but when I didn't get an answer, I opened the door." She took a breath before saying, "Everything was gone. All that was left was his futon folded neatly in the middle of the floor."

The former fight merchant sat and stared at the raven-haired woman in shocked silence. He never thought that his best friend would act like that.

"He didn't leave a letter or a note?" Sanosuke asked.

Kaoru shook her head.

"Nothing."

"Ah, man," he said, rubbing his head, making his hair stand up even more than usual. "How did the kid take it?"

"Yahiko's angry, but I figured he would be. He couldn't understand why Kenshin left."

"Do you think you know why?"

"I have an idea," she said, standing up. "I'm going to make tea. Want some?"

Sanosuke stood up with her.

"Sure, let me help you."

As they fixed the tea, Sanosuke observed the kendo teacher. Her fine facial features were determined and she seemed sad, but not devastated like he thought she would be. Not like she was when the redhead had left for Kyoto.

"Why do you think he left?" he asked Kaoru as she placed a steaming cup in front of him.

"There was nothing left for him here," the blue-eyed girl said before taking a small sip of tea.

"Of course there is!" the older man cried. "Kenshin has you-"

He trailed off as the young woman shook her head.

"No, he lost me a long time ago. I think he finally realized that after I stopped his advances. He understood that he had to step aside for someone else.

Sanosuke stared at Kaoru.

"I don't understand."

"I got sick of waiting. My heart can only break so many times before it tells me to move on," Kaoru said, rotating her teacup so that the wave pattern faced Sanosuke. "So, I moved on. He finally figured it out and left."

She frowned.

"Except I wish he wouldn't be so childish about it. Leaving in the middle of the night without a word is akin to throwing a temper tantrum."

"So what happened to the vase then?"

"Oh, I got angry," she said, looking embarrassed. "I let my temper get the better of me."

"Ah."

"Let me change out of this practice uniform. It's a mess. I'll treat you to the Akebeko," Kaoru said in a sudden subject change, standing up from the table.

"Nothing like food to make a bad day better," the man said with a chuckle.

She smiled.

"Precisely."

Sanosuke drained the last of his tea as a question popped into his head. As he pondered the answer, he cleaned up the mess Kaoru had made in the front hall. A few minutes later, the kendo teacher emerged, dressed in a brightly patterned kimono.

"Ready?" Kaoru asked him, when she found Sanosuke sprawled out on the porch.

"Who is it?" he asked, looking up at her.

"What?" she asked slightly startled.

"Who is it that took Kenshin's place?"

"You should know the answer to that question better than anyone," she said, kneeling down next to the big man.

Sanosuke blushed under his deep tan and saw Kaoru smile as he watched her.

"Kenshin saw it, you know," she said, looking forward. "The way I acted, the way you acted. He put two and two together and this was the end result."

"How did you know?" the ex-fighter asked huskily, gazing at the other teenager.

She let out a laugh.

"I'm not blind, Sano," she said, using his nickname for the first time since they had met.

"And?" he asked hopefully.

"Here's your answer," she whispered and leaned over, placing a light, chaste kiss on his lips.

He deepened the kiss by gripping her chin lightly and she responded with the same fervor.

When they broke apart for air, he grinned widely at her.

"I think I like this answer."

Kaoru laughed. Getting up, she held out her hand to him.

"Come on. Let's celebrate."

"But," Sanosuke said, unsure of how to celebrate since Kenshin disappeared.

The girl saw his struggled and cupped his cheek with her hand.

"We will no longer live in the past. Tonight, we live."


	3. All Your Love Is Revenge

**Beginning Note:** So it has been a while since I have update anything in general. It's been a little crazy, what with graduating college and trying to find a job. Desperately I might add. But I am updating. And trying to write more. Inspiration seems to come and go with me. Either that or I have the worst attention span ever… Please enjoy. I have produced a drabble to throw everyone for a loop. Hooray!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the RuroKen characters… I just screwed them up for my own sick purposes.

_**All Your Love Is Revenge**_

The tall man smiled wickedly as he saw the fear in the young girl's eyes. He loved that look. It made the game more fun.

"What do you want, Enishi?" the raven-haired girl asked, hiding her fear with bravado.

"To see him suffer, Kaoru, my dear," the spectacled man said. "It's the ultimate revenge."

"He didn't do anything to you," she snapped, eyes flashing in anger.

Enishi backhanded Kaoru.

"He took away my sister!" he screamed, staring down at her.

"She loved him," the kendo teacher said, wiping blood from the corner of her pretty mouth.

"She loved Akira."

"Then why did she jump in front of Kenshin, Enishi?"

The white-haired man froze.

"It was a moment of weakness on her part."

Kaoru picked herself up and moved toward Enishi slowly.

"Believe what you like, but deep down, you know Tomoe saved him because she loved him."

The tall man stared at her over the tinted lenses of his glasses.

"You don't even know what you're talking about. You don't even know what love is. Battousai can't even bring himself to love you despite everything because he's so haunted by my sister!" he shouted, slamming his fist down on the stone railing of the balcony.

The girl flinched, but stood up straight.

"While that may be true," she said, voice shaking. "But what do _you_ know of love? You're so consumed with revenge, I don't think you have the capacity to love."

Kaoru spun on her heel and marched back into the expansive island mansion.

Enishi stood there, stunned at her words. What did a chit like that know about him, especially the way he felt? After all, she was just a stupid girl who wanted the love of a man whose soul was so fractured that he wasn't even really a man at all.

He grimaced. This may have been too much for the redheaded fighter. Enishi wouldn't get a chance to see the man shattered. Disappointing. But then he'd be stuck with the kendo brat. He'd figure out how to get rid of her.

Plans formulated in Enishi's head as he settled into the chair positioned on the balcony. A tired smile formed as he calculated and recalculated his choices. How he loved logistics.

* * *

He jolted awake at the feeling of a blanket being lightly around his shoulders. He hadn't even realized that he had dozed off. Standing there in the sun's dying light with her back to him was Kaoru. She was blanketed by the red light, staring out at the sea, the waves lapping the sandy shore. She turned slightly, so he could see her profile and the silent river of tears that slid down her face.

At that moment, the beauty of the teenager struck Enishi, whose heart had been frozen since the age of ten. For the first time, he was unsure of himself and of his revenge. How could he just kill her when this was done?

"He's not coming for you," he said softly.

Kaoru didn't jump at his voice. She knew she had woken him up. The blue-eyed teenager didn't respond, just stared into the darkness. After a minute, she turned to face him, silhouetted by the fast approaching darkness. She moved past his sitting form, breeze stirring her midnight locks around her face, obscuring her tears. Kaoru's fingertips grazed the skin of his forearm, raising gooseflesh. She disappeared into the blackness of the hallway.

Enishi shivered.

* * *

"He's not coming for you," the white-haired man told his captive a few weeks later.

The dark-haired girl scowled at him, the pale skin under her eyes a smudgy purple from lack of sleep.

"You don't know that," she snapped, moving away from where he was leaning next to her on the stone railing of the balcony.

He stared at her over his spectacles with his piercing eyes, wondering if she was uncomfortable in the small room he had placed her in when he had brought her here. She was obviously not sleeping well and she was thinner than she had been in the earlier weeks.

"What?" Kaoru asked, snapping him from his thoughts. "Stop staring at me."

"Would you like to be put into a different room?" the man asked suddenly. "A bigger one? And with a wardrobe with clothes so you don't have to wear that bathrobe all the time."

The kendo teacher looked down at the ragged pink cloth that had been pretty sorry looking to begin with. It's daily use made it look worse.

"It would be nice," she said slowly. "But why now?"

"Change in scenery."

The girl cautiously followed the tall man down the hall where he opened a door to reveal a room with a real bed, not a lumpy cot that she had been sleeping on, and a wardrobe, blue cloth peaking out of the open door.

"Change," he ordered. "They should fit."

Without another word, he shut the door in her shocked and protesting face. Leaning against the papered wall, Enishi ran a hand through his hair. He was playing a dangerous game. Far more dangerous than the original game. What was he doing? The feelings he constantly suppressed were starting to crack his icy exterior, eating him alive. He couldn't afford those cracks.

He stood up as he heard the door open and gulped when Kaoru emerged, her cheeks pink from embarrassment. She looked stunning in the pale blue kimono embroidered with white egrets flying from the hem. It had been a present to his sister from her in-laws. The navy obi accented her thin waist.

"Does it look that weird?" she asked shifting, causing the delicate silk to whisper with the movement.

Enishi realized he had been staring at the girl, jaw dropped. He cleared his throat in a business-like manner.

"No. Quite the opposite in fact."

The corner of her pretty mouth twitched in a quick smile.

"It's a beautiful kimono," Kaoru said, running her hands down her stomach, smoothing the slippery cloth. Enishi's eyes followed their movement hungrily. She glanced up at him, azure meeting teal.

"It was my sister's," he said. "Akira's family had it made for her. She never got a chance to wear it."

The raven-locked girl's eyes flew open wide with surprise.

"Should I take it off?" she asked uneasily, biting her lower lip.

"No," Enishi said quickly, regretting mentioning his older sister for once. "Are you hungry?"

"A little," Kaoru said, looking visibly relieved to be off the subject of Tomoe.

_She must be sick of her,_ the older man thought. _To her, she feels that she's a replacement of Tomoe for Battousai. Which she is,_ he reminded himself quickly. Which was that whole reason for her being with him in the first place.

"Come, I'll cook," he said, starting down the hall.

"You can cook?" the girl asked, doubt evident in her tone.

"Of course," Enishi scoffed, feeling slightly insulted at the implication that he couldn't cook. "How do you think I survive? Certainly not on the food you've been cooking."

Kaoru stared at the arms dealer, outraged.

"My cooking tastes fine!" she exclaimed angrily.

"If you don't mind heartburn, he muttered, glancing at her.

The girl's mouth tightened into a thin line. She pulled the back of his shirt hard, making him stop and face her.

"If it was so awful, you didn't have to eat it," she snapped, stabbing a finger into his muscular chest. "It's not like I forced you to eat it anyway. You're going to kill me eventually, so why bother being polite?"

Enishi froze at her statement. That had been his plan initially if Battousai didn't show. But now? He wasn't so sure.

"Stop," he said softly, cutting off the kendo teacher's tirade. He took a step towards her, hand outstretched.

The color that had flooded to her cheeks in anger quickly retreated and she flinched from his large hand. That slight movement pierced his heart. He had made no move to touch her since the first day. He gently gripped her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. Kaoru was surprised at the sadness in his pale eyes.

"Kaoru," he said, using her first name for the first time in weeks. He usually ignored her name and used orders because using her name would make his feelings real. "If I were going to kill you, I would have done it the day I knew he wasn't coming for you."

"You don't know for sure that he won't come for me," she said with all the ferocity he had come to love about her. "He's searching for me."

"He thinks you're dead!" Enishi boomed. "He's not coming to save you! Get the idea out of your head. He doesn't love you enough to not believe you're dead."

Kaoru's hand flew up and smacked Enishi so hard, it left a bright red imprint on his left cheek. Tears shined in her beautiful blue eyes.

"You're a bastard," she said, wrenching her chin from his grip. She backed away from the large man.

"Kaoru, you know it's true," he said quietly. You've known for a while."

"Shut up!" she shouted. "You think you've had your stupid revenge, but you haven't!"

"You're right," Enishi said, grabbing her upper arms. "My revenge is loving you."

With that, he placed a rough kiss on the girl's lips, bruising them. Kaoru was stiff in his arms. He pulled away and stared down at her.

"If I had truly wanted to kill you, I would have done so when you tried to escape weeks ago."

"I don't get you," was all she said, pointedly ignoring his escape statement.

"You're not supposed to, Kaoru," he said, leaning close to her, nipping her ear lightly with his teeth. He felt her shiver. "My revenge _was_ stealing you. Now it's keeping you and making you mine in time."

"What?"

He gave her a rare smile. "I won't force you to love me. You can't force people to love. I want you to accept this in your own time."

He kissed Kaoru again, gently this time, and was delighted that she responded. She was so starved for love; she would turn to him easily.

The next few weeks were blissful until the ship came, bringing Battousai and his friends. Enishi was certain Kaoru would convince her friends, especially Battousai, to leave without a fight when they saw how happy she was with him. But that didn't happen, and as Mibu's Wolf led him to the rowboat, he stared at his betrayer.

A triumphant smile played on her lips as she glanced at him over Kenshin's shoulder, folded into his loving embrace. Anger bubbled in his chest. She had succeeded in fooling him completely, pretending to love him. And he was a fool.

But he was too tired for any more revenge. As he slipped his from the shackles on the streamliner, he left his love for the kendo teacher behind with the iron, slipping into the ocean, disappearing, but always close and always watching, waiting to see if it had been even a little real for her.

It wasn't.

It was Kaoru who had revenge in the end.

**A/N: I have seen a few Kaoru/Enishi pairings. It's definitely a weird pairing. I guess mine isn't a true pairing since the love is completely one-sided, but whatever. I hope you enjoyed it. This was a long time coming. Hopefully another chapter soon!**


	4. I Want Your Drama

**Beginning Note:** So, I haven't written anything in a while. I've had limited time and inspiration. But no longer! Two stories in one night! I'm so amazing! Haha. Not really. But I do have a story nonetheless. This is an AU and based in the United States. Boston actually. There is only a brief mention, but I figured that there aren't frats or sororities in Japan. I didn't really check, but that's beside the point… Anyway enjoy the couple that is Yahiko and Tsubame.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own any of the RuroKen characters, but have just screwed them up for my own purposes.

_**I Want Your Drama**_

Long, pale fingers tucked reddish-brown curls behind the sitting girl's ear. Tsubame sighed as the wind untucked them and blew her hair into her face.

"That wouldn't happen if you just tied it in a ponytail," came a voice behind her.

Tsubame tilted her head back so that her neck rested against the bench.

"You know I hate having my hair in a ponytail," the girl told the upside-down Yahiko, whose hands were shoved deep into the pockets of his jeans.

"You're so difficult," he muttered, moving out of sight and sitting next to her.

"I'm not difficult," she protested. "You're the difficult one."

"I'm just stubborn," the teenager said, sticking his nose in the air, the very image of a snob.

Tsubame poked him in his ribs, causing him to lose his composure and laugh hysterically as she tickled him. It reminded her of how they used to be, when things were easier and life not so complicated. She stopped poking him, tears pricking her eyelids.

"What are we doing?"

"I thought we were having a nice conversation between friends," Yahiko said, leaning forward so his elbows rested on his knees, hands hanging between his legs.

"You know that's not true!" Tsubame told him angrily. "I don't understand how you can act like nothing happened!"

"Because it just wouldn't work," he said, matter-of-factly. "I refuse to let us be like Misao and Aoshi."

"That's not the same," cam the protested reply.

"Oh yeah?" the dark-eyed teen challenged. "How?"

She didn't say anything, just stared at her hands nestled in her lap.

"Exactly! They were best friends for years before they dated. They don't even talk anymore!" he half-shouted. "Sanosuke can barely watch his best friend date Kenshin because he's so in love with Kaoru!"

"We are not Misao and Aoshi or Sanosuke, Kenshin, and Kaoru," Tsubame said, getting up and pacing in front of him like a caged tiger. "You can't deny that there is something here! We both felt it the other night!"

"What happened the other night was one too many drinks at a frat party," Yahiko said, face emotionless.

"So what? A mistake then?"

"Yes."

Her slap echoed in the silent park.

"You're a jerk," she whispered, tears coursing down her cheeks.

Yahiko looked at Tsubame with sad brown eyes.

"I wish I could take back what happened," he said softly. Her eyes opened wide in horror and she opened her mouth to shout at him. "But not for the reason you think."

He settled back, pulling his Boston College beanie further down on his head.

"I wish I could take it back so you wouldn't be so hurt anymore. I wanted to avoid something like this, and I want us to go back to being best friends again," he explained, unable to look at the silently crying girl. "I'm sorry, Tsubame."

"You are a fool," she breathed. "You want things to be as they were. You'd rather pretend than face reality, like a coward."

Yahiko winced at the truth.

"Let me know when you grow a backbone and you want to admit how you feel," Tsubame hissed, adjusting the neckline of her burnt orange cashmere sweater. "You know where to find me."

"Tsubame…"

"I'm late for my sorority meeting," she lied, and walked away in to the fading light.

The college sophomore watched his best friend and one-time love disappear. His stomach tightened guiltily. It had been a mistake for them to sleep together. He saw how it had affected his older friends.

"Dammit," he muttered, running his hand down his face.

He had to find a way to fix things between them before it got any worse. Yahiko couldn't deny their chemistry and their potential, but he couldn't lose the only constant in his life besides kendo.

He needed to own up his feelings and reluctances and find some way to unbreak Tsubame's heart. It wouldn't be easy, but maybe it would one day work out for the two of them.

One day…


	5. You Know That I Need You

**Beginning Note:** So, this was actually written a while ago, but I've been lazy about typing… Soooorrryyyy. I apologize for the slight lemon at the end of the story.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the RuroKen characters… I just screwed them up for my own sick purposes. They belong to Watsuki Nobahiro.

_**You Know That I Need You**_

The messy haired fighter eyed the lithe girl with a hungry brown gaze. He wanted her so badly; it hurt deep inside his chest. He clenched his fists, wincing as pain shot through his arm. He had forgotten how swollen his hands were.

"Hey, great fight tonight, Sano!" Kenshin said, coming from behind and clapping the taller man on a thickly muscled shoulder. "You definitely have a great chance for the title this year!"

"Yeah, maybe," Sanosuke muttered, glancing at his small-boned friend.

_Relax_, he thought to himself as his already battered hands protested more abuse by being clenched tightly.

"Kaoru and I are taking you out to celebrate, so go into the locker room, shower, change, and we'll get going," the red-head said, flipping open his cell phone to make a reservation.

Sanosuke glanced at the raven-haired girl sitting on the wooden bench in the hallway with a book and a highlighter before slipping into the locker room.

Under the stream of almost scalding water, the fighter thought about what he had passed up. Kaoru had always been in his life since their days at the orphanage, all the way past their college years. He had promised her adoptive parents that he would take care of her when they moved to the city together. But while Sanosuke had promised them that, she also took care of him, nursing his bar fight wounds and rubbing his back when he had a hangover. He figured it was only a matter of time before it developed into something more permanent.

The big man swore under his breath as he turned off the burning water and wrapped a towel around his trim, well-muscled waist. His relationship with Kaoru had been well on its way until Kenshin had come into the picture. Sanosuke liked the small man and they had become fast friends, but he knew that the redhead had skeletons hidden deep within. He recognized the hallow look in the older man's violet eyes. It used to mirror his own.

Sanosuke thought about all the reasons why Kaoru and Kenshin shouldn't be dating and came up short. The man had a dark past, but so did he and Kaoru after the abuses they faced on the street. As he threw his fighting gear into his gym bag, he remembered his best friend and her state two weeks ago. Kaoru and Kenshin had been dating for about a year and a half and they didn't fight often, but when they did, it was ugly.

While she technically didn't live with him anymore, Kaoru still had a room at Sanosuke's apartment with a few of her things. She had called him hysterically crying at 1:45am, saying that she was at the door, but couldn't find her key. The older man had opened the door and she collapsed into his arms, sobbing. What he got from Kaoru was that she was sick and tired of Kenshin being haunted by his past and not dealing with the present. His inability to let go and open up to her was driving her beyond mad.

"I can't do this anymore, Sanosuke," she said, voice muffled by his chest. "I'm invisible half the time. Relationships are hard most of the time, but Kenshin's issues make it harder!"

He hugged her tighter against him.

"I know, Jouchan, I know," he said into her hair. "He's hiding something from you. You shouldn't have to deal with that. It's unfair to you. I know the look he has. I used to be like him, you know that."

"You had a reason to let go," the girl said, looking up at her tall friend. "Why am I not enough for him? What am I doing wrong, Sano?"

"Oh, babe," he muttered. "You're not doing anything wrong. He's an idiot to not recognize how amazing you are. Kaoru, you deserve so much more than that. You really do."

He hesitated, unsure if he should say more.

_Fuck it_, he thought.

"Kaoru, I know you think that professional fighting is the reason I let my past go," he said, blushing lightly. "But it's not the whole reason. I was able to let go of who I used to be and the things I had done because I realized I had someone else to live for. _You_."

"Me?" the raven-haired girl echoed in shock, leaning against the well-toned fighter.

"Well, yeah," Sanosuke said, very much embarrassed. "I realize how much my gang lifestyle was hurting you. I couldn't continue to watch you spill any more tears over my stupidity. And if that red-headed idiot had any sense, he would realize how lucky he is to have you."

"Oh, Sano," Kaoru said, hugging him tightly. "You're so good to me."

They sat down on the faded leather couch, thighs touching.

"I only treat you the way you deserve to be treated," he told his friend, softly tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled at him shyly.

"It's more than I deserve," she whispered, resting her milky white forehead against Sanosuke's tan shoulder. "I think this is it between Kenshin and me…"

Sanosuke gripped the girl's chin gently between his fingers.

"Look at me, Kaoru. You deserve better than what he's giving and more."

Kaoru flushed a deep red and the spiky-haired ex-gang member leaned down slowly and placed a soft kiss on her full lips, falling even more in love with her. He pulled back apologetically, seeing the surprise register on her face.

"I'm sorry," he muttered quickly, desperately wanting to take back what he did, but at the same time… he didn't.

Kaoru gripped him by his shirt collar and pulled him to eye level.

"Who said to stop?" she asked, and surged forward, capturing his lips with her own.

Sanosuke responded with fevered passion, setting his nerves aflame. This is how it was supposed to be. It was always supposed to be him and Kaoru, from day one. This is what he had been waiting for since they were ten years old.

He slid his hands up under her shirt and stroked her back with careful movements. He felt the girl shiver under his touch. Her pale skin was flushed as they broke apart for air and the fighter's tan skin was tinged pink. Sanosuke realized belatedly that Kaoru had shifted and was sitting in his lap, well-toned legs wrapped around his waist. He raised a dark eyebrow at his friend and she threw her head back and laughed at his look. He joined in, holding her close to prevent the lithe girl from falling off his lap.

"Didn't know you bent that way," Sanosuke commented nonchalantly.

"You'd be surprised," Kaoru said with sly innocence. "Care for a demonstration?"

"Think I'd be impressed?" he inquired, standing up while keeping a firm grip on the girl's behind.

Kaoru cocked her head cutely to the side, raven hair falling sideways.

"Most definitely."

With that, the former Sekihoutai gang member carried his best friend into his bedroom.

The slam of a locker brought Sanosuke back into the present. He had really thought that night would seal forever with Kaoru, but instead, it did the opposite.

When he had woken up the next morning, the bed was empty, but the smell of coffee floated from the kitchen to his nose. Emerging from the bedroom, he found Kaoru sitting on the balcony in one of his t-shirts, knees up, and her delicate hands wrapped around a mug of black coffee. Pouring himself a cup, Sanosuke slid open the door and placed a soft kiss on the top of his best friend's head.

"Hey, babe. How'd ya sleep?" he asked, taking a sip of the steaming liquid.

"Fine. It's been awhile since I've slept in the apartment."

There was a pause. She hadn't looked at him yet.

"Ah… Yeah, well. You know," Sanosuke half stuttered, unsure of what to say to the girl. "Kaoru-"

Her cell phone ringing interrupted the messy haired fighter.

"Hello? Hi, Kenshin."

Wincing, Sanosuke went back inside the apartment and sat at the dining room table, slowly sipping his coffee and watching Kaoru talk to Kenshin on the phone.

_Shit, that can't be good_, he thought as he watched her laugh and smile at something the other man had said.

"So?" the big man asked when she got off the phone and stepped back into the apartment.

"So what?"

"What's the deal? Did you guys break up?"

Kaoru looked away guiltily.

"He wants to talk and try to fix things," she said quietly. "I said yes."

Sanosuke stiffened.

"What about us? Last night?" he asked, his fists white-knuckled around his mug.

"There is no us," the young woman said flatly.

"Bullshit," he snapped. "You were the one who straddled me last night!"

Kaoru's eyes flashed.

"Oh, really?" she asked, her notorious temper flaring into life. "Who was the one who kissed me in the first place? Don't place the blame on me!"

"Hey, girlie, I apologized and you said 'Don't stop'! It's your fault as much as mine, Jouchan."

Last night shouldn't have happened. It was a moment of desperation on both of our parts," Kaoru quipped.

"Fuck you, Kaoru. I can't believe you," the older man spat. "You know damn well that it wasn't a moment of desperation."

"So it was destiny?" she asked with a bitter laugh. "Grow the hell up, Sanosuke. This isn't a fairytale or a movie. The hero doesn't always get the girl. End of story."

Kaoru flew around the apartment, gathering her clothes and pulling on her jeans. She headed towards the front door.

"Why aren't I good enough?" Sanosuke asked, throwing the dark-haired girl's words back at her. "Or am I just not enough?"

Her pretty face crumpled.

"You're better than good enough," she whispered, voice thick with emotion. "You're perfect."

"Then why? Why him and not me?"

Kaoru's azure eyes were sad before she turned to leave.

"Because you never asked, Sanosuke," she said sorrowfully.

"Kaoru-"

"I have to go," she said. "I still love him despite of everything. It's hard because I love you the same way."

She slipped out the door before he could say anything more.

* * *

Throwing on clothes and running a hand through his perpetually messy hair, Sanosuke remerged from the locker room, met by an exuberant Kenshin.

"Let's go, buddy!" he said, clapping the much larger man's shoulder. "We can try and pry Kaoru from her research."

"Books don't write themselves, Kenshin" Kaoru said, not even looking up.

After that one night, it had become awkward between the two. They barely talked to each other in the past two weeks. Sanosuke hadn't told the redhead about sleeping with Kaoru and from the blush that stained her cheeks when she looked at him, he was pretty sure that she hadn't told him yet either.

Later, as he hovered over the naked waitress from the restaurant they had eaten at, he knew all he had to do was bide his time. Kaoru would get sick of Kenshin's treatment of her and she would come back to him. As he ran a tongue over the blonde girl's nipple, he remembered Kaoru from that night and the sound of her cries and moans.

All he had to do was wait and Kaoru would be his and he would hear those sounds all the time. He growled in pleasure at the thought as he thrust himself forward, making the waitress cry out. Kaoru would come to him and he could stop sleeping with nameless, faceless women. She would be his.


	6. Baby, It's Sick

**Beginning Note:** Yeah, it's been a while. I apologize. It's been a rough few months. No inspiration. Lots of working. Lots of unneeded drama. Same old. Not the best, but not too shabby. I'll have several more chapters out… Eventually.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own the RuroKen characters… I just screwed them up for my own purposes. They belong to Watsuki Nobahiro.

**Baby, It's Sick**

A thin tendril of smoke sparsely from the cigarette the young woman held loosely in her fingers. She blew her bangs from her eyes as she scanned the busy campus for her best friend.

"I thought you said that you were quitting," came Misao's voice from behind her.

Kaoru waved a pale hand at the approaching girl. "Next semester."

"You say that all the time," Misao pointed out, flipping her long braid over her shoulder. She glanced at her best friend with critical turquoise eyes. "You smoke too much and don't eat enough, Kaoru."

"What are you, my mother?' the raven-haired girl asked as they wound their way back to the dorms, a half a mile away from campus.

"No, but you worry me sometimes."

"It's just stress, Misao," Kaoru said, trying to reassure the other girl. "Enishi is being a jerk and all possessive and that stupid Lit paper has me living at the library most of the night. Thank God it's just about finished."

Misao rolled her eyes at the mention of Kaoru's long-time boyfriend.

"Why do you even date that creep, Kaoru? He's a total ass and you guys fight all the time."

The other girl shrugged as she crushed the rest of her cigarette under her caramel suede boots.

"It's, like, what my family expects, you know? It's stupid, but since our dad's rely so much on each other for the business, it's less of a hassle to just date him and deal with the drama," Kaoru explained half-heartedly, not even believing what she was saying.

"Puh-leez, Kamiya," the shorter girl exclaimed, wrinkling her nose in disgust. "That's such a load of bullshit. Why don't they make Tomoe and your older brother date? That doesn't seem fair."

Kaoru hiked her school bag higher on her shoulder and gave Misao a look.

"I know, but you know how my dad can get." She puffed out her chest and deepened her voice to match her father's tone. "_Enishi will be a very important part of this family, Kaoru. He'll own half of everything his father and I have built. It's up to you to help inherit this._ Tomoe doesn't want anything to do with the business, nor does my brother."

Misao slowed as the dorms loomed over the two teenagers.

"Wait," she said, holding out her arm to stop Kaoru, eyes wide in understanding. "That sounds a lot like forever for you and Enishi. As in white picket fence forever."

The dark-haired girl nodded, azure eyes serious. "Exactly."

"Wow."

"I know."

"That's crap," Misao raged as they entered their dorm and climbed the stairs to the suite they shared with their friend, Takani Megumi.

"Tell me about it," Kaoru said, glancing at her phone as it beeped, indicating she had received a text message from the hot guy that sat next to her in British Literature. He asked if she was going to the party to his fraternity house. "Hey, open the door while I respond to Sanosuke about tonight."

Misao did as she was asked and burst into the suite loudly. Megumi, studying on the couch, didn't look up from her notes.

"Must you, Misao?" she asked, tone annoyed.

"I must. Kaoru's getting married!" the braided hair girl sing-songed, dropping her bookbag unceremoniously on the floor.

"What!" Megumi exclaimed, head flying up from her Organic Chemistry textbooks and notes.

Kaoru rolled her eyes as she entered the room, sliding her phone shut.

"Enishi popped the question?" the pre-med student asked, eyebrows arched over her cinnamon eyes in surprise.

"No," Kaoru said, scowling at Misao, who ignored her and peeled the wrapper of a Baby Ruth she had in her school bag. "He hasn't, but it's pretty much already planned. Has been since I was, like, six."

"Shit," was all Megumi said, pen still poised over her notebook.

"Shit indeed," the other girl said as her phone beeped a text message again, this one from Sanosuke's best friend, Kenshin, also asking if she was going to tonight's party.

"God," she exclaimed. Misao and Megumi stared at her.

"Explanation?" Misao asked, mouth full of candy bar.

"Kenshin and Sanosuke are panting," Kaoru said, sitting down and easing off her boots."

"Heavily, I might add," chirped Megumi, turning her attention back to her textbooks.

"What?" she asked as she felt her two roommates stare at her. "Kenshin bugs me all the time in Organic. And Sanosuke's in my Countercultures class. It's like a couple of dogs begging over a treat."

"Appropriate description," Misao giggled.

"Oh, shut up, Weasel," Kaoru said, throwing a book at her. "Just because you and Aoshi have the perfect relationship…

"At least you have a relationship and you _still_ have _two_ guys coming at you like you're a bitch in heat."

"What's with the dog references today?" Misao asked.

"Because Kaoru's such a dog," Megumi joked.

The other girl turned her nose up at her friends. "I hate you both."

The three of them dissolved into giggles at the raven-locked girl's attempt to be disdainful.

"Please tell me you're going to take a break from studying to come to the party with us?" Misao begged Megumi, turquoise eyes in full puppy-eyed mode.

"I have two huge tests on Thursday," Megumi moaned. "I can't go."

"Please!" the short girl cried, plopping herself in the future doctor's lap, on top of all her notes. "With cherries?"

"God! Misao, get your fat ass off my notes!"

"My ass isn't fat. It's cute," she protested.

"I don't care what it is," snapped the cinnamon-eyed doctor-to-be, wisps of hair escaping from her ponytail and floating around her face. "Get off!"

"Say you'll come. You need to be stress-free to take a test, which isn't until next week. It's Friday. A day to relax, drink, and not study," Misao complained.

"Come on, Weasel," Kaoru said, pulling Misao off of Megumi, who began frantically smoothing out her notes. "I didn't even said I was going."

"What?" cried Misao. "I thought you were going!"

"That's why Sanosuke and Kenshin have been blowing up my phone all day, you dolt," the girl said. "I have to finish my paper."

"You guys are a pair of old ladies," the tiny girl accused. "Take a break, please! We haven't gone out in forever!"

Megumi looked up from her notes.

"She does have a point, Kaoru," she said, giving the lounging girl a pointed look that was completely defeated.

Just then, Kaoru's phone beeped, signaling yet another text message.

"Ah! Fine! Between Kenshin and Misao's begging and Sanosuke's pouty lips –"

"Sexy pouty lips," Misao whispered loudly.

"This party had better be the best party in the world," Kaoru finished, glaring at the happily dancing Misao, whose braid was swinging around dangerously.

"Yes!" she exclaimed. "Finally something fun to do!"

"You are such a five-year-old," Megumi said as their overly excited roommate flung herself in their rolling desk chair and spun wildly. She looked her watch. "Well, it's 4:30 now. Whose in favor of an all out pampering, courtesy of my father?"

She held up her credit card.

"Totally in," Misao squealed.

"Me too," Kaoru chimed in.

"You both need a haircut anyway," Megumi commented, inspecting her own hair for split ends. "Here's the plan. The mall for clothes, then the salon for our hair and nails."

"Good plan," Kaoru said, running her fingers through her shiny black tresses. "I'm going out for a cigarette. Come down when you're ready."

Misao frowned at the lithe girl's retreating back.

"She's been smoking too much lately."

Megumi sighed, standing up and stretching out her long model-like legs.

"She's been frustrated since her dad made her quit kendo and soccer. The whole expectation thing with Enishi is a whole other issue."

"I don't get it," Misao said, scratching her head. "She doesn't love him."

"Love has nothing to do with it. You're lucky," the pre-med student said, going into her bedroom to change out of her study outfit. "Your family doesn't have the expectations for you like Kaoru's and mine do. You have Aoshi and you love each other. Kaoru's stuck with Enishi and I'm still waiting for my parents to set me up."

Misao scrunched her nose in disgust.

"It's stupid that they expect so much from you. I guess I did get lucky since Gramps will be running the restaurant forever and that Aoshi is basically part of the family, but in a good way.

The taller girl re-emerged from the bedroom, dressed in a purple long-sleeved Henley tee and a pair of well-fitting dark blue jeans. She had released her long, thick hair so that it fell like a curtain down her back.

"I'm just afraid of what my parents are going to arrange," Megumi said as she gathered up her purse and keys. "I'm at least being left alone at the moment."

Misao followed her friend out of the suite common room and down the stairs. The two glanced at each other as they caught a glimpse of Kaoru through the glass of the front entrance to the dorm. Her eyes were red-rimmed and her cigarette was clenched tightly between her lips. Her two roommates approached her cautiously, Megumi slipping an arm around her thin waist.

"What happened?" she asked softly, pretty sure she knew the answer.

"It's Enishi," Kaoru said, letting the cigarette dangle from her fingers, exhaling smoke angrily. "What else would it be?"

"What's that jerk's problem now?" Misao asked angrily. "You're not allowed to go out and enjoy yourself?"

Kaoru shook her head as she took another drag of her cigarette. "Apparently not," she said. "I made the mistake of telling him I wasn't just going out, I was going out to a party. With boys other than him."

She waved her hand.

"You know how he gets."

"Jesus, Kaoru!" Misao burst out. "Look at what he's doing to you! I can't remember the last time I saw you eat properly and you're basically chain smoking like Saitou."

Saito was the captain of the campus police, notorious for chain smoking and wolf-like stare.

"She's right, Kaoru," Megumi said gently, easing the other girl's half smoked cigarette from the thin, trembling fingers.

Kaoru deflated like a balloon, rapidly losing air.

"Can we just drop it?" she asked, sounding sad and tired. "I just want to enjoy my mani-pedi and be able to flirt aimlessly with Sanosuke and Kenshin."

Megumi and Misao exchanged doubtful glances while Kaoru looked at the ground, defeated. Megumi shrugged at the smaller girl in concession.

"Fine," Misao said, slinging her arms around her roommate's shoulders. "But you have to promise me that you'll flirt shamelessly with both boys beyond the point of patheticness."

Kaoru let out a weak laugh.

"And whoever's heart you break tonight, send them straight to me," Megumi chimed in. "Preferably Kenshin. I can fix anything that's broken."

The raven-haired girl snorted in amusement. The three university students ambled off to the mall in search of the perfect ensemble. Later, as Kaoru lay on her back, Sanosuke trailing open-mouthed kisses down her next and his large hands deftly unhooking her bra, guilt burned in her stomach.

She wasn't stopping herself from what could be a big mistake, but it felt wrong when Enishi touched her like this. With him, it felt like a dirty act, as if a brother were undressing his sister. She should care that this could destroy everything. But in that moment, with Sanosuke nipping her collarbone, she pushed aside thoughts of her future fiancé and lost herself in a defining moment, leaving Kaoru to forge her own dangerous path.

**A/N: Alright. I'm going to admit. This isn't my best. Written a while ago. I was struggling. I've tried to write an Enishi/Kaoru fic several times. Here's one of them. Another has been swirling. It will eventually make it onto paper. Please be kind.**


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